Some Christians may believe that different categories of unbelievers (Muslim, Atheist, Wiccan, etc) get saved more easily than others, depending on what the barriers are. Still, it’s a heart issue, not a mind issue. Proof of God is not the problem; no amount of intellectual debate will win someone over. Many former atheists have testimonies about God simply revealing his love to them through a believer’s actions.

In Acts chapter 3 the apostles prayed for a cripple beggar and he was healed in front of everyone, yet in the next chapter, the Sanhedrin council had them arrested, put on trial, and thrown in prison. Take a look at what they said about the miracle everyone witnessed.

Acts 4: (NLT) 13 The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say. 15 So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves. 16 “What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. 17 But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.” 18 So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.

They acknowledged the supernatural power associated with the name of Jesus, yet they still rejected Jesus as lord. How does that work? People can be so hard-hearted that God can appear to them in the flesh, and they will continue living in sin and rebellion against his ways.

Revelation 20 says that Satan will be freed at the end of the millennial reign of Christ on earth, to deceive the nations into challenging Christ’s authority. He can’t lie and say “God doesn’t exist”, or “Jesus is not a hero”, because the Bible would be proven by then since Jesus defeated the Anti-Christ and ruled for 1000 years, so his deception must be through their hearts, not their minds.

Let’s simulate this event from Revelation. A wicked ruler claiming to be the messiah (the Anti-Christ), with the help of a false prophet, takes over most of the world. Then the battle of Armageddon (Meggido) breaks out between two evil forces in the world (The Anti-Christ in the West vs rulers fro m the East), and Jesus comes and defeats them both and those the Antichrist and his False Prophet into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 19), and the binding of Satan by the real messiah, Jesus, who then rules the earth for 1000 years in peace and harmony (Revelation 20). Then, after all of that proof that the Bible is true and Jesus is Lord, near the end, Satan is freed, and he starts a new movement to rebel against Jesus and the Kingdom of Heaven, and people join him. These people saw the Bible come true or at least heard the stories years later, and lived under God’s rule through Jesus. Yet some will still stand against God.

If some people can decide to stand against God after Jesus descends from heaven and rules for 1000 years, and all the unbelieving dead are raised afterward, then PROOF isn’t the problem; the issue is their hard hearts. Satan will likely deceive them the same way he deceived Eve in the garden, by telling them that God is not good and is deceptive. He’ll probably talk about how humans used to have democracy and are now under an authoritarian dictator forever, and tell them that they should all be free. He may say that God does not love them and they should overthrow him to experience real love. Some people will be drawn into his lies and tricks and rebel against God after experiencing heaven on earth.

There’s also the stubbornness of the Israelites in the Exodus story. They complained and murmured that God was trying to kill them and that he would abandon them in the wilderness because they weren’t at the promised land yet. However, God did all the work of rescuing them from Egypt using signs and wonders that prove He exists and that He is superior to false gods. He then provides food and water miraculously in the desert. There is no doubt that He wanted to rescue them and keep them safe to fulfill his promise to their ancestors. Yet they still couldn’t see that, and they were even afraid to enter the promised land when they found out there were giants in the land, with large armies and fortified cities in Numbers 13-14. As if the same God that parted the Red Sea and drowned the Pharaoh and his army and caused a bunch of plagues in Egypt can’t defeat some giants and knock down some fortified city walls. Lack of faith in God is NOT a lack of proof of God. All the evidence in the world won’t change the skepticism of even God’s people.

I will close with Paul’s words in Romans 1:19-22

Romans 1:19 They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. 20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. 21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. 22 Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.